Monthly Archives: October 2014

My favorite professor told me recently that my blogs are getting mundane! So, I decided to write a fresh story from my past…

THE TRIPLE PRAYER

Shortly after I got saved, almost 40 years ago now, I discovered that Jesus said, "You may ask me for anything in my name and I will do it." (John 14:14 NIV) So, I decided to pray and ask for three things I really wanted…

1. We needed a bigger house. Our family had outgrown the 4 room cape we lived in.

2. I needed to stop smoking. I asked the Lord to help me.

3. I wanted to stop working, especially til 7PM every night in our little business. I missed my kids (ages 5 and 9) and I wanted to be home when they got home from school every day. And then I waited for the answers.

A month or two passed and the next thing I knew, I was at work and decided to light up a cigarette. After two or three puffs, I threw up. Panic set in! I only vomit when I smoke during pregnancy! I decided to light up another cigarette to confirm this, and again I vomited. Immediately I looked up to heaven and shouted, "What kind of an answer is this, Lord? I’ve been like the virgin Mary lately. I haven’t had any time to get preggy! What do I do with this? I never expected this kind of an answer!" I shouted at Him. "This is not what I wanted to happen!"

Anyway, one of my prayers had been answered. No more smoking for at least nine months! I continued to work through my entire pregnancy.

All was going well until a few weeks before the baby was due. At work I suddenly started having severe labor pains. Ending up in the ER, my problems went from bad to worse. Oh, I forgot to mention that our income was so low that I qualified for some welfare, which included free medical, thank God.

The next 12 hours are still a horror memory. The hospital put me in a room to be observed. (I should also mention that I was pretty timid back then, especially about speaking up to doctors.)

Remember, 38 years ago they didn’t monitor your baby on computers like they do today. The monitoring you received was an internal exam to see if you were dialated or not. And, my hubby wasn’t allowed in the room. Add that to being a welfare case, and it equals out to disaster.

For the next half day, I layed there while every intern, and doctor who decided to come in my room, gave me an internal; at least 7 or 8 times. Even during the shift change! It was very painful! By the time my husband was allowed in, I was bleeding badly, like I had my period. And, I was in so much pain from them probing and pushing at my baby, that I was nauseous.

A nurse on duty finally came in to check on me, and asked how I was doing. I spoke up for the first time because I wanted it to stop, "Do I have to keep having all these internals?" I asked her.

"WHAT?" she asked me with a shocked look on her face.

"At least a half dozen different doctors have come into my room and done internals on me! And, I’m very sore and bleeding badly!" I told her. She lifted my blanket and couldn’t believe her eyes! Blood was pouring out of me and my water had not even broken.

What went on after that could be heard all over the hospital. She proceeded to scream at every single doctor in her department. As head nurse in OB, she yelled at each one of them still on duty, and shouted at the top of her voice, "How dare you treat my patient like that! You have no right!" After vocalizing for 10 or 15 minutes, she returned to my room, explained to me that none of that was necessary, and apologized for all that was done to me. Then I was prepped for release. I was told to have complete bed rest and watch for problems. After I got home I found out from my family doctor that if any blood got into the placenta, my daughter could be born with brain damage.

I was so frightened that for the next two weeks I layed in bed and talked to the Lord. All I could do was pray and trust God. It was the longest two weeks of my life! Finally, one day my water broke and I was rushed to the hospital where I delivered my tiny daughter. Thank God she was born healthy, bright and alert.

I should also mention, not one single male, nurse or doctor or intern, was allowed into the delivery room.

Now, back to my original prayers. All three requests to my God were answered.

1. I stopped smoking and never lit up again

2. I stopped working (outside my home) from two weeks before her birth.

3. Within one year we moved out of our tiny four room cape, and into a five room, three bedroom ranch, average for a family with 3 children back in the 70’s.

4. And most importantly, my baby was born healthy and beautiful. Today she is a social worker, who just turned 38 years old this month, and she is half way through graduate school for her Master’s Degree!

God is faithful and answers all our prayers. We must be patient and trust Him. But He always, always, answers all our prayers! On His time, not ours!

Love in Christ, Claire xoxo

Ps. 37:4, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." (NIV)

"Can you come down here to the barn and help me for a minute?" my sweetie answered back. I headed for the dreaded task, never knowing if I can help.

"I dropped a small brass fitting on the floor and I desperately need it to put this pulley back together! Can you help me search for it?" And so I began yet another difficult search of locating one miniscule part necessary for my soulmate to complete his project. Flashlight in hand, I got on my hands and knees amongst the hundreds of metal shavings. I searched and searched until my knees were numb.

"I can’t find it! It’s too tiny! (1/4 inch long). And, all these shavings are making it impossible to see!" I whined.

As I stood up and brushed myself off, I questioned him, "Have you prayed and asked the Lord to help you find it?"

"No," my faithful husband said, "I don’t like to bother Him with little things like this!"

So, I looked at him and took his hands and together we shot up a quick prayer to our Savior. Discouraged, I headed back to the house. Over my shoulder I shouted, "Why do we always wait until the very end before we ask Him for help?"

Some time passed and suddenly my hubby came through the front door with a massive grin on his face, "Look what I found!" and he held up his huge hand. There between his chubby fingers was the tiny quarter inch brass fitting so necessary to finish his work.

"As I was working, I just turned and looked down and there it was!" he said. "Could that possibly be it? I thought, and I bent over and picked up the minute piece and scratched my head in amazement! It was sitting off by itself, way away from the entire area that we had searched!" he told me all excited.

We both were relieved, "I think we should ask first instead of last from now on, don’t you?" And we sighed together, knowing nothing is too small for God.

Love in Christ, Claire xoxo

1 Peter 3:12, "For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their prayer…" (NIV)

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